(1) Field of Invention
This invention relates to the field of oral hygiene and more particularly to oral hygiene devices and processes which utilize a brushing instrumentality and fluid jet discharge in combination to effect enhanced massaging action, plaque and debris removal.
(2) Summary of Prior Art
The use of brushing means in conjunction with, or apart from, fluid jet means is known to be an important part of an individual's oral hygiene routine. It is also known that the use of brushing means alone provides the user with necessary massaging action in addition to the cleansing action of the brush abrading the surfaces of the teeth. Use of a fluid jet alone has a different beneficial effect, in that it is useful in clearing damaging bacterial products from relatively inaccessible gingival and subgingival areas where bacteria may proliferate and enhance the decay process.
The effectiveness of fluid jet devices alone is still controversial. However, clinical results suggest that such devices produce beneficial results in the mouths of patients with extensive bridgework, splints, or orthodonic bands, especially when used in conjunction with flossing and brushing.
The fluid jet device alone will not remove all plaque. The combination of brush (to dislodge the more tenacious deposits) and fluid jet, is more highly recommended in a plaque control program.
Of all the methods of plaque removal, the toothbrush is the most universally accepted, it is easy to use and is the most socially acceptable mode for cleaning the mouth. Its effectiveness, however, depends greatly upon the frequency of its use. Most persons will benefit from brushing more than one time per day. To promote repetitive use, the device should be simple, otherwise the user may be discouraged.
Brushing alone, however, often will not clean gingival and sub-gingival areas, and bacterial and plaque deposits will remain there, even after brushing. It is therefore beneficial to utilize both brushing means and fluid jet means simultaneously.
The use of both brushing and fluid jet action together has many beneficial effects. The fluid jet, when properly combined with the brushing action, serves to enhance the latter's efficacy and to reduce buildup of undesirable materials, missed by brushing; it also serves to carry the dislodged materials away from dental surfaces by reason of its irrigating properties.
Combined usage also produces a clean feeling in the mouth of the user.
Thus, it has long been an object, of those involved in the field of dental hygiene, to effectively combine brushing means and a fluid jet means, in order to realize the benefits described above.
The earliest attempts to combine the two resulted in devices wherein the brushing means and the fluid jet means were inextricably combined. It was thus impractical to use the fluid jet means apart from the brushing means. This is disadvantageous to the user, as the full advantages of using the fluid jet means alone will not be realized.
Subsequent designs were employed whereby a single fluid jet source could be utilized with two different attachments, one of which would be a brushing means combined with a fluid jet, a second being a solitary fluid jet attachment. This would allow the user to choose which of the two applications (brushing and fluid jet, or fluid jet alone) he desired, by attaching the appropriate outlet. These devices however employed designs which made it difficult for users to switch readily from one application to another.
The consequence of this deficiency may be seen by noting that the most logical and common method of using the fluid jet means is to first employ the brushing means in conjunction with a cleansing agent (e.g., toothpaste), and also in conjunction with the fluid jet means. The combination of these three agents allows the user to first remove all debris from the outer surfaces of the teeth by use of the brushing means, allows brushing means to further massage the gums and provide the salutory effects associated therewith, and simultaneously have the fluid jet action enhance the brushing action and dislodge debris. Following this the user would disengage the brushing means, at this point soiled, and utilize the fluid jet alone. The jet at this time may be utilized to carry away the remains of the cleansing agent and/or any debris which may yet remain on the surface of the teeth, as well as for its primary purpose of cleansing the gingival areas and providing stimulation to those areas. The prior art devices referred to above make it difficult for the user to conveniently follow this procedure, as the prior art devices are clumsy and difficult to implement. The user, in order to follow this procedure would have to employ a cumbersome and relatively time-consuming process, for he would have to first remove entirely the first (brushing) attachment and then engage the second (fluid jet) attachment.
Many of the prior art devices involve the use of screw-on attachments. Thus, the removal of one attachment and the securing of the other takes quite a bit of time. Even utilizing a clamp-on or snap-on technique, however, does not make the process simple or convenient. It is still necessary for the user to interrupt the procedure and disengage the brushing attachment. This pause will often occur while the user has his mouth full of the cleansing agent leaving a bad taste and uncomfortable feeling in the mouth. Furthermore, it is well known that complications tend to discourage the regular use that is essential to effective oral hygiene.
It is thus disadvantageous to minimize the amount of time the user must spend and actions he must take in changing or removing the brushing means.
Another disadvantage is found in those instruments which provide both hydraulic flow action and brushing action, and by the use of a movable connection allow the user to pivot or slide the fluid jet means away from the brushing means, or vice versa. By retaining the brushing means in relatively close proximity to the fluid jet means after this routine is followed, the brushing member is retained close to the face of the user. This is both inconvenient and unsanitary. Furthermore, the use of a movable interconnection may lead to the build up of debris and waste material in moving parts and inner recesses of the instrument, with consequential bacterial proliferation. This too is unsanitary. Furthermore, in certain applications, such as in institutional settings, it is often advantageous to allow the user to completely dispose of the soiled brushing member after use or to sterilize it. These features are not readily attained in the above described arrangements.
Finally these prior art designs are not susceptible to use with commercially available hydraulic flow means. This means that a potential user, who may already have a fluid jet cleaning instrument (such as that currently traded under the name of WATER-PIK) would have to purchase a completely new system. Furthermore, from a manufacturing and marketing standpoint, it is often more advantageous to make and market an adaptation to a popular preexisting device.
It should also be pointed out that the effectiveness of a toothbrush is derived from the stiffness of its bristles. The stiffness will deteriorate in a matter of weeks after continuous usage. An inexpensive brushing device, such as that described herein, will encourage users to dispose of used, ineffective brushes. The user will therefore benefit from an increased effectiveness of his oral hygiene routine.
It is therefore one object of this invention to provide a brush-fluid jet oral hygiene instrument which allows the user to conventionally realize the salutory effects of brushing means alone, brushing combined and enhanced with fluid jet action, and fluid jet action alone.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a combined brush-fluid jet oral hygiene instrument which has simple and convenient means for selecting either brushing alone, brushing with fluid jet action, or fluid jet action alone.
It is a still further object of the device to provide an easily removable brushing member in a brush-fluid jet oral hygiene instrument so that sterilization or "throw-away" use may be readily accomplished.
Another object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive and easily manufactured attachment for a preexisting commercially available fluid jet oral hygiene instrument.